Madrid, Feb 13 (NationPress) In a stunning upset, Atletico Madrid overwhelmed the Copa del Rey titleholders and La Liga frontrunners Barcelona during the first leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal on Friday.

A remarkable own goal coupled with contributions from Antoine Griezmann, Ademola Lookman, and Julian Alvarez resulted in a commanding 4-0 lead for Atletico heading into the second leg at Camp Nou on March 3, as reported by Xinhua.

Atletico delivered an electrifying first-half performance, leaving Barcelona struggling to match the home side's intensity and speed. Under the direction of Diego Simeone, Atletico consistently exploited Barcelona's high defensive line, with Nahuel Molina and Giuliano Simeone creating relentless challenges on the right and Lookman being a constant threat on the left.

Barcelona was missing injured players Raphinha and Marcus Rashford, while Dani Olmo teamed up with Fermin Lopez in an offensive midfield position.

Griezmann put pressure on Barcelona goalkeeper Joan Garcia with an early shot in the second minute, and Atletico seized the lead dramatically just four minutes later when Garcia mishandled a back pass from Eric Garcia, allowing the ball to slip under his foot and into the net.

Atletico doubled their lead in the 15th minute as Molina and Giuliano Simeone again found success down the right, allowing Griezmann to finish with a precise left-footed shot. Shortly thereafter, it could have been a 3-0 lead, but Jules Kounde intervened to block an effort from Alvarez.

The relentless pressure paid off as Atletico made it 3-0 in the 33rd minute, with Molina and Simeone combining effectively to set up Lookman for a well-placed finish.

In response, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick substituted Robert Lewandowski for Marc Casado with eight minutes left in the first half. Lopez managed to force a save from Juan Musso, but Atletico struck again just before halftime, with Alvarez firing in a fourth goal following another swift counterattack.

Barcelona emerged for the second half with renewed determination, as Lopez again tested Musso, but a potential goal from Pau Cubarsi was disallowed for offside after a lengthy VAR review.

Atletico adopted a more defensive stance in the second half, aiming to control the game while Barcelona pushed forward. Their efforts were further hampered when Eric Garcia received a red card for a foul on Alex Baena, deemed a last-man challenge by the referee.

Despite having the advantage of a player up, Alexander Sorloth squandered a chance to extend the lead to 5-0. However, Atletico remains a strong favorite to secure a place in the final.

In the other semifinal match on Wednesday, Real Sociedad edged out a 1-0 victory against Athletic Bilbao.